


'Til Death Do Us Part

by 5oomilesmore (byathousandcuts)



Category: Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (TV)
Genre: David and Emily met in law school, David is a Clarkeman shipper, Declarations Of Love, F/M, Fluff, Max is a huge softie, Zoey's complicated past relationships, i love David and Emily, wedding vows
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-12 17:56:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,214
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28889469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/byathousandcuts/pseuds/5oomilesmore
Summary: After Zoey's boyfriend breaks up with her a week before David and Emily's wedding, David encourages Zoey to bring Max to the wedding as her (friendly) plus-one. However, the romantic ambiance of a wedding, some fancy clothes, and a few drinks can go a long way...
Relationships: David Clarke/Emily (Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist), Zoey Clarke & Max Richman, Zoey Clarke/Max Richman
Comments: 4
Kudos: 30





	'Til Death Do Us Part

**Author's Note:**

> Set ~2 years before Season One at David and Emily’s wedding!! This is pure fluff and was so fun to write, especially after the heaviness that was 2x03. Warning: some language (a few f-bombs).
> 
> Zoey’s dress: https://www.lulus.com/products/all-the-way-up-forest-green-lace-midi-dress/649722.html 
> 
> Max’s suit: https://theblacktux.com/collection/suits/grey-suit 
> 
> The wedding venue: https://www.herecomestheguide.com/wedding-venues/northern-california/vineyards-at-nella-terra-cellars

Saturday night dinners at the Clarke home were always the highlight of Zoey’s week. The Clarkes had always been family-oriented, which was one of the reasons Zoey had opted to attend Stanford over MIT—it was the closest she could be to the Bay area while still being part of a kick-ass computer science program. Even David had chosen Berkeley for law school so he could be close to family. Now, in her late twenties, Zoey loved living so close to her parents and brother and being able to see them so often. She was especially grateful on nights like this.

 _“Ugh._ I can’t believe Isaac broke up with me a _week_ before your wedding! Who am I supposed to bring now?” Zoey grumbled as she sat at the dinner table with her parents, her brother, David, and his fiancée, Emily. 

“You don’t have to bring anyone, honey. You can just hang with your mom and me!” Mitch smiled, his eyes twinkling. Though Zoey loved her parents to pieces, she still wasn’t looking forward to going stag to David’s wedding.

“Why don’t you just bring Max?” David asked innocently.

“Max…well? Richman?” Zoey asked awkwardly, her cheeks flushing red.

“Someone’s got a _crush_ ,” Emily teased, and Zoey shot her an irritated look. “What? That’s what David told me.”

 _“David!_ I do not have a _crush_ on Max. He’s been my best friend for, like, three years. Don’t be weird.” 

“Fine, you don’t have a crush on Max,” David said, though the quick glance he shot Emily’s way suggested that he thought otherwise. “I’m not saying you need to bring him as your date, just drive up together. I already invited him, anyway. He’s like family.”

“That is a lovely idea, David!” Maggie said, beaming. “And Max _is_ family. Right, Mitch?”

“Of course! Ever since he admitted to me that he prefers the Padres over the Dodgers _and_ the Giants, I’ve considered him a son.”

“Hey, just because I don’t watch baseball doesn’t mean Max can dethrone me!” David said seriously. 

Zoey mulled over the idea. David _had_ already invited Max to the wedding, so it wasn’t like it would be _that_ weird if she suggested they drive over together. And she could definitely use her friend right now after the tumultuous breakdown of her and Isaac’s relationship. Still… something was holding her back.

“I’ll think about it.”

✸ ✸ ✸

After returning home from Family Dinner Night, Zoey was absolutely exhausted. On top of the breakup, Joan had been piling on the work at SRPQ Point, assigning Zoey endless projects to work on. She made a beeline for her bedroom without even pausing to take her shoes off. Zoey placed her phone on her bedside table, sat on the bed, and sighed, feeling the frustration of the week escape her chest. 

She glanced at her phone on her bedside table. _Fuck it_ , she thought, and swiped open the screen. With a quick tap on Max’s contact, she initiated a FaceTime call and held her phone out in front of her, patience growing thinner with each droning tone as she waited for him to pick up. After about four tones, Zoey was about to hang up before she saw her best friend appear on the screen.

“Hey, Zo. Sorry I didn’t pick up earlier. Just finishing up some code.”

“Hey!… pal. I have a _huge_ favor to ask you.” Zoey said awkwardly, willing herself to make it through the phone call without scaring Max away.

“...Okay?” Max replied interrogatively, puzzled by her tone.

“So, you know Isaac…” 

“Newton? You know, we’ve met a few times but I don’t think he remembers my name. Kinda rude of him." Max quipped.

 _“Max.”_ Zoey reprimanded him.

“Yeah, Zoey, I know Isaac, your boyfriend Isaac. Nice dude. Maybe he’ll finally end your cycle of unnecessarily complicated, exhausting for—”

“Isaac broke up with me,” Zoey blurted out, which wiped the cheeky grin off Max’s face.

“Oh. I’m sorry, Zo, I didn’t mean—”

“No, it’s fine. Don’t worry. I mean, you’re right! About my relationships. I mean, the dude broke up with me a _week_ before we were supposed to go to my brother’s wedding together.”

“I am _so_ going to teach him a lesson for messing with you,” Max said intensely, which shocked Zoey. “On an unrelated note, what’s his address?”

“Forget him. Seriously, he’s not worth either of our time.” Zoey said resolutely. _“But_ , if you _did_ want to make me feel better about getting dumped…”

“Mhm?” Max nodded, his forehead wrinkled slightly in curious anticipation.

“...You could come with me to David and Emily’s wedding. You know, make sure I don’t drown my feelings in too much alcohol. Or do anything stupid. It’ll be fun!” Zoey asked expectantly, clasping her hands in front of her.

Max’s eyes widened. “You want to bring _me?"_

“Of course! Come on, Max. You’re my best friend. I mean, didn’t David already invite you? We can just drive together and sit with each other and everything. Unless… you were planning on bringing someone else?” Zoey felt her heart sink at the thought. She hadn’t even considered that Max might already have a date.

Max shook his head rapidly. “No. Nope. I mean, I _could_ ask Emma Stone, but something tells me she won’t be available. I guess you’ll do,” he said teasingly.

“Shut up!” Zoey laughed. “So is that a yes?”

“Sure,” Max said softly, beaming through the phone screen.

✸ ✸ ✸

Max picked Zoey up from her apartment early the morning of the wedding so they could make the drive over to the vineyard in Sunol. She opened the door of her apartment to see him standing in the hallway and felt her heartbeat quicken without explanation.

“Not bad, Maxwell.” Zoey looked her best friend up and down appraisingly. He was decked out in a sharp grey suit and black tie. Though his outfit was simple, Max looked handsome and radiated an air of confidence that Zoey hadn’t seen before, which only made him look more attractive. In a general sense, of course—not that _she_ was attracted to him.

“Not so bad yourself, Zoey,” Max replied, smiling playfully. “That color looks good on you.”

Zoey felt herself blush slightly at the compliment, though that was how she usually responded to any kind of praise after a lifetime of being showered with it. Still, she was proud of her outfit—her mother had helped her pick out the dress, a dark forest green, high-necked lace number that hit just below her knees. She had pulled her hair back in an elegant low bun and curled some pieces to frame her face, along with applying some copper eyeshadow to her eyelids to bring out the blue in her eyes.

“Well, shall we?”

They climbed into Max’s Audi and set off for the journey ahead. It was a Saturday, but the traffic on the highway was just as intense as usual. Zoey was glad she could be with Max during the long drive rather than alone—she would be bored out of her mind trapped in the gridlock by herself.

“So, you’re not in the wedding, are you?” Max asked, glancing over at Zoey briefly before returning his eyes to the road.

“Nope. Emily and I aren’t that close, anyway. She offered to put me in the wedding party, but I didn’t want to get saddled with walking down the aisle with one of David’s lawyer friends.” Zoey grimaced slightly.

“What, you mean you _don’t_ want to hear them remind you that they’re public defenders every few minutes?” Max quipped, earning an amused glance from Zoey. They continued chatting about David and Emily, cracking jokes, and trading non-sequiturs as the hour-plus car ride flew by.

The wedding was held outdoors in a beautiful vineyard dotted with vines and flowers, with rows and rows of rustic wooden chairs and a beautiful wedding arch at the front of the aisle. Zoey led Max to their seats in the front and hugged her mother and father.

“Mom! Dad!” She reserved her longest embrace for Mitch, whom she would never get tired of hugging.

“Looking sharp, Max,” Mitch said, shaking his hand firmly and smiling brightly. 

As the orchestra warmed up to play the wedding march, they all took their seats, Zoey seated with Mitch on her left side and Max on her right. She glanced up at the arch and saw David standing nervously and fidgeting with his hands. She caught his eye and winked, and David smiled back at her giddily. 

With the sound of strings and winds flowing through the open air, the crowd turned their heads to the end of the aisle, where the wedding party started their procession. After Zoey’s younger cousin Peter scattered the aisle with rose petals, Emily and her parents started their journey down the aisle. Zoey was in awe of Emily—she looked beautiful in her long, white lace dress, her hair pinned back in an elegant updo. What really set her apart was the gigantic smile plastered onto her face. Zoey had _never_ seen her look so obviously happy, and her heart flooded with admiration as she glanced between Emily and David, who was sharing the same stupid grin on his face. When Emily finally reached the arch, they couldn’t take their eyes off each other.

“Family and friends, thank you all for coming today to share in this wonderful occasion. Today we are here together to unite Emily Kang and David Clarke in marriage,” the minister began, standing between the couple. By the time they had moved onto their vows, Zoey felt herself holding back tears.

“David, you are my rock. You are the one person I know who can always make me smile, even though I’m not usually one for smiling. Since the moment you helped me study for that Civil Procedure exam our first year of law school, and you pointed out my mistakes on the study guide—that was the moment I knew I loved you. You are always real with me, even when I don’t want to be, even when every single person would run away, you’re there. You’re the most genuinely kind, giving person I know, and I never thought I would be this happy. _You_ make me happy, and all I want to do is return the favor for the rest of our lives. I am looking forward to many more years of comforting you while you cry during movies and being right _almost_ all of the time. I love you.”

Zoey heard a small sniffle and turned to look at Max, who was trying to subtly wipe a tear from his eye. “What?” He chuckled as another tear replaced the one that he had just erased. Zoey giggled and refocused her attention on the altar.

“Em, you are a force of nature. You are the strongest, most powerful, most honest person that I know, and I will admit, it does intimidate the hell out of me sometimes.” The crowd laughed; David’s lighthearted remark was a welcome break from all the crying. “But that’s what I love about you. You challenge me to be the best version of myself. You _never_ let me give up on myself, and you believe in me so much it makes me want to believe in myself, too. I have never known someone so smart, so driven, and so _compassionate_ —despite your hard exterior—and I will never stop being in awe that you chose me. I love you, Em, so much that it’s embarrassing. And I’m definitely going to start crying right now.” David chuckled as tears started streaming from his eyes, right on cue.

The minister smiled and directed his attention at David. “David, place the ring on Emily’s finger and repeat after me: Emily, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love with the pledge to love you today, tomorrow, always, and forever, ‘til death do us part.”

David repeated the words and gingerly slipped a golden band onto Emily’s finger, giving her hand a light squeeze.

“And now…Emily, place the ring on David's finger and repeat after me: David, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love with the pledge to love you today, tomorrow, always, and forever, ‘til death do us part.”

Emily followed suit and slipped the ring onto David’s hand. They clasped hands and gazed into each other’s eyes as if they could see something there that was only visible to them.

“By the authority vested in me by the state of California, I now pronounce you husband and wife!” The minister declared, and Emily flung her arms around David and pulled him into a long, deep kiss.

✸ ✸ ✸

The reception was held in a tented area nearby the vineyard, with a towering, rustic cake decorated with leaves and flowers. Zoey knew that David had probably picked the venue; he had talked about having a rustic wedding since they were kids and since before Zoey knew what “rustic” meant.

“They are perfect together,” Max said as he and Zoey walked into the tent, browsing for their name cards on a table at the front.

“They really are. Seriously, I’ve never seen David so happy,” Zoey smiled. “Hey, looks like we’re at Table 2. Do you want to come with me to congratulate the happy couple?”

“Sure.” Max smiled.

They headed towards a long table in the back, where Emily and David were being bombarded by friends and family who were offering their wishes. Zoey ran up to David as quickly as she could in her heels and flung her arms around him.

“David! Emily! The ceremony was beautiful. I’m so happy for you both.” She hugged Emily next, and her new sister-in-law hesitated at the unfamiliar embrace at first but then returned the hug eagerly.

“Congratulations, man. Emily.” Max said, shaking both their hands. “Your vows were beautifully said.”

“Yeah, Max _cried,”_ Zoey said smugly, and Max shot her a look of mock offense.

“So did you, dork.” Max quipped.

“I guess when you love someone, the words just kind of come out.” Emily hugged David’s forearm and gazed up at him lovingly.

“Aw, babe, you love me?” David asked, meeting her gaze with a mischievous smile and leaning down to kiss his much shorter wife.

✸ ✸ ✸

Zoey and Max found their seats at one of the tables in the back of the tent. Max pulled out Zoey’s chair for her. “M’lady.”

“Why, thank you Sir Maxwell.” Zoey giggled and sat down. She pulled out her phone, which had been on silent and Do Not Disturb the entire ceremony, and scanned it to see if she had missed any calls or texts. Zoey was surprised to see that she had a missed call and three texts from Isaac. She furrowed her brow as she sat frozen in that position, unable to slide the screen open to read the messages.

“Is everything okay, Zo?” Max asked with concern in his eyes.

“It’s… Isaac. He sent me a bunch of texts,” Zoey shook her head rapidly, feeling the panic rise up her chest. “He hasn’t spoken to me in over a _week_ , and _now_ he chooses to reach out? On the day of my brother’s wedding?”

“Do you want me to call him and give him a piece of my mind?” Max said determinedly.

“I just… I don’t know why he would be texting me. Why would he be texting me, Max? Oh my god, I need to read the texts. I need to know what’s going on. What if they’re horrible?” Zoey started spiraling.

“Zo. Zoey. Hey,” Max placed his hands on both of her shoulders to steady her, which seemed to calm Zoey’s racing heart a bit. “Look at me. Whatever you want to do, I’m here, okay?”

Zoey nodded somberly, finding an anchor for herself in Max’s eyes. “Let’s go outside.”

✸ ✸ ✸

They found a bench outside the tent and sat down together. Zoey took a deep breath and unlocked her phone, the screen opening to her texts with Isaac. She steadied herself and read the texts aloud.

  
  


**ISAAC:** _4:37 PM_

Zoey, I know I fucked up, but please hear me out

When we got into that fight, I was so hurt that all I wanted to do in that moment was hurt you, too. You know I care about you. I would never hurt you on purpose.

Can we please talk? I think we both said some things we didn’t mean in that moment. At least I know I did.

  
  


“I can’t believe this. He’s trying to _gaslight_ me.” Zoey huffed, throwing her phone angrily onto the grass. She immediately rose from the bench and picked up the phone to make sure there were no cracks before returning to her seat.

“That asshole.” Max seethed, surprising Zoey. She had never seen him like this, with that fire in his eyes. “What happened between you two, anyway? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“No, yeah, we… haven’t really unpacked _that_ relationship yet, have we?” Zoey sighed heavily. 

Zoey explained the events leading up to her last fight with Isaac, which involved her not wanting to go on a trip with him to Yosemite and him claiming that she cared more about her work than about him.

“I mean, we had been dating for two months. Taking a trip… that’s a huge step. One I wasn’t ready to take. And instead of understanding that, he turned the problem around and made it about _me.”_

“I thought you liked him, though.” Max offered.

“I did. He was different. Sure, he was a total hipster, and honestly, I _still_ don’t really know what his job is, but he always went with the flow. Like nothing held him back.” Zoey sighed. “Whenever my relationships start to get even a _little_ serious, it feels like I’m relinquishing something. Like I’m about to give up. Does that… make sense?”

“Yeah, actually,” Max replied thoughtfully, leaning back on the bench. “Like any single person could be the _last one.”_

“Exactly,” Zoey said, looking over at Max. He stared off into the distance in front of him as if contemplating something. “Anyway, do you want to go get drunk?”

“Very much so.”

✸ ✸ ✸

Zoey thanked David silently for the open bar at the wedding as she sipped on her third margarita. Next to her, Max was nursing his third whiskey sour. 

“Love… is, like, _so_ weird.” Zoey mused, watching the ice in her glass move as she swirled the drink around. “My brother… got _married_ today. He promised he would love the same person for the _rest of his life_. Can you even _imagine?”_

“Yeah. Uh, I mean, kind of.” Max said offhandedly, glancing over at Zoey for a few seconds before he realized he had been staring.

“Really? I didn’t take you for a hopeless romantic.” Zoey peered up from her drink and saw Max studying his whiskey sour like it was bugged code.

“Yeah, hopeless is a good word for it.”

“I’ll drink to that,” Zoey said, offering her glass up to Max. They clinked their glasses and both took long gulps. Zoey sighed, languishing in her lowered inhibitions. “Nobody’s _ever_ going to love me.”

 _“What?_ Come on, Zoey, that is so untrue. Your parents and David are crazy about you. And—” He suddenly stopped talking.

“And?” Zoey asked expectantly, looking over at Max, who had suddenly become enthralled by his drink once again.

“And… uh… we should go dance! Here, they’re playing Billy Joel.” Max arose from his seat and stuck his hand out to Zoey, who accepted it gratefully, eager to work out her frustration on the dance floor.

They danced wildly to “Uptown Girl,” Max singing along as he grooved to the beat.

_And when she knows what_

_She wants from her time_

_And when she wakes up_

_And makes up her mind_

“I didn’t know you could sing!” Zoey said as she danced, feeling the blood and alcohol coursing through her veins.

“I can’t! I’m just drunk!” Max said loudly, and Zoey doubled over in laughter at the reactions of the nearby wedding attendees, who had looked over at the sound of his voice.

As the last few notes of the Billy Joel song rang out, the music shifted to “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing,” and couples flocked to the floor and began slow dancing. Max stopped and looked awkwardly at Zoey. Without even a second thought, she stuck her hand out to him.

“May I have this dance?”

Max grinned and took her hand, which Zoey guided to her waist before placing her arms around his shoulders. She smiled as she gazed into the eyes of her best friend, who had made her day so fun and enjoyable after she had worried so much that it would be the exact opposite.

“Thank you,” Zoey said.

“For what?” Max asked, a hint of confusion crossing his face.

“Just… for being here. When I really needed someone. Thank you.”

“Of course,” Max said, smiling gently. His lips parted as if he had been prepared to say something else but thought better of it.

Zoey scanned his face, puzzled. “What?”

“It’s just… what you were saying earlier, about nobody ever loving you?” 

Zoey laughed nervously. “Yeah. Drunk Zoey also tends to be Depressed Zoey.”

“Well… I mean… I love you, Zoey. You know that, right?” 

Zoey looked at Max in complete shock. Well, _of course_ he loved her. They had been best friends for well over three years and spent inordinate amounts of time together. She loved him, too, in a friendship kind of way. And yet, there was that feeling she had felt when David had first suggested she bring Max to the wedding. When she had seen him standing outside her apartment in his suit. Even when they had joked innocently in the car or during the reception—that feeling like her stomach was churning and her heart was pounding.

“Can we go talk outside?” Zoey asked suddenly, though she continued dancing.

“Sure,” Max said cautiously.

Zoey led Max by the hand to the same bench they had sat on earlier and sat down nervously, drumming her fingers on the wood beneath her.

“Zoey, I—”

“What did you mean when you said you loved me?” Zoey asked point-blank, the words tumbling out of her before she could decide whether it was a good idea to say them.

She watched Max as he sat in silence for a moment, pondering over the question. He glanced at her and then at the ground, unsure how to respond. “Look, Zo, I’m a little drunk, and—”

 _“Max.”_ Zoey looked at him meaningfully. He met her eyes with trepidation, and they both held their breath as if they were waiting for something.

“I mean—” Max hesitated, but seeing Zoey’s expectant expression made him continue. “This wasn’t how I wanted to do this, and the timing is horrible, especially considering you and Isaac just broke up. But—I love you. I’m _in_ love with you, and I think I have been for a while now. After being friends with you for so long and really getting to know the real you, it just made me realize how I would rather spend time with you than do anything else in the world.”

A smile started to creep onto Zoey’s face as Max continued.

“When you laugh at my jokes it feels more genuine than when anyone else does, no matter how unfunny they may be. When you talk about your future at SPRQ Point, I feel so proud because I _know_ it’s going to be a reality. You’re just… the best person I know.” He said, raising his eyebrows at Zoey. 

“That was quite the speech,” Zoey said, her heart beating out of her chest.

“The words just kind of came out.” Max grinned nervously.

Without a second thought, Zoey leaned over and kissed Max, placing her hands on his face to pull him closer. In that moment, she wasn’t sure where her lips began and his ended as they melted into each other’s embrace. When they finally pulled apart, their eyes stayed locked on each other’s, unblinking in the culmination of years of tension.

“Zoey…” Max barely whispered, as if he was still in shock from the kiss. 

“I think part of me was kind of always waiting for you to say that.” She ventured bravely, finally naming all of those strange feelings that had crossed her mind for what they had really been— _longing_.

She leaned in for another kiss, and as Max pulled her closer with a hand on her jaw, Zoey wondered how it had possibly taken her so long to do something that made so much _sense_.

✸ ✸ ✸

When Zoey and Max walked back into the tent hand in hand, Zoey caught David’s eye from across the room. He looked from Zoey, to Max, to their intertwined fingers, and then shrugged while grinning triumphantly. Despite knowing she would never hear the end of it from her brother from that day forward, Zoey couldn’t help but smile back. For once in her life, loving someone for the rest of time didn’t seem impossible.


End file.
